College of DuPage: A Parent's Guide to Admissions, Cost & Outcomes
Chicago, Illinois · Private nonprofit · Open access · CDS 2025-2026
College of DuPage is a private institution located in Chicago, Illinois. For the most recent reporting cycle, College of DuPage admits the majority of qualified applicants, with an overall admission rate of 81%. Admitted students typically post an average SAT of 1283 and an ACT composite around 30. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $35,196 per year, which is the figure most families actually pay rather than the published sticker price. For parents weighing whether College of DuPage is realistic for their teenager, the most useful planning step is comparing your child's current GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against these admitted-student ranges — not the headline acceptance rate alone.
What GPA does my child need for College of DuPage?
College of DuPage has a broadly accessible admissions profile, and most students who complete a standard college-prep curriculum with a 3.0 GPA or higher are competitive for admission. Parents tracking their child's GPA toward this tier of school can use Solyo's free calculator to see weighted, unweighted, and college-recalculated numbers side by side.
What does College of DuPage weight in admissions?
College of DuPage reports the following factor importance in its Common Data Set (2025-2026). These are the criteria the admissions committee weighs when reviewing applications.
- • Rigor of secondary school record
- • Academic GPA
- • Class rank
- • Standardized test scores
- • Talent/ability
- • First generation status
- • Alumni/ae relation
- • Level of applicant's interest
- • Interview
- • Geographical residence
- • State residency
- • Religious affiliation/commitment
SAT and ACT scores College of DuPage typically admits
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 570–660, with an EBRW midpoint near 640. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 27–31. Many applicants here submit scores; even slightly below the average can be competitive when combined with a strong GPA and curriculum.
| 25th percentile | 1220 |
| 50th percentile | 1283 |
| 75th percentile | 1390 |
| % submitting SAT | 39% |
| 25th percentile | 26 |
| 50th percentile | 30 |
| 75th percentile | 31 |
| % submitting ACT | 15% |
- • Test-optional: Standardized test scores are not required, but may be submitted and considered.
- • Policy detail: Considered if submitted
Where admitted students ranked in their high school class
Class rank distribution gives parents a clear sense of how academically dominant a typical admitted student was within their own high school cohort — often a more meaningful signal than absolute GPA.
| Top 10% of class | 37.3% |
| Top 25% of class | 69.3% |
| Top 50% of class | 91.6% |
| % submitting class rank | 19.2% |
How much does College of DuPage actually cost?
Published tuition is $51,716 for in-state students and $51,716 for out-of-state, before grants and scholarships. Room and board adds roughly $16,894 annually. After need-based and merit aid, the average family pays a net price of $35,196 per year — the number that actually matters for budgeting. Roughly 23% of students receive Pell Grants, a useful indicator of how much need-based aid the school distributes.
| In-state tuition | $56,930 |
| Room and board | $17,980 |
| Average net price (after aid) | $35,196 |
| Application fee | — |
Application deadlines and early decision data for College of DuPage
| Notification date | Rolling basis beginning 10/15 |
| Reply deadline | May 1 or within 2 weeks of notification |
| Rolling admissions | Yes |
Will my child graduate from College of DuPage?
Retention and graduation rates are the most overlooked numbers in college planning, but they predict actual outcomes far better than acceptance rate. They tell you whether admitted students stay and finish on time.
Other colleges in Illinois parents ask about
- University of Chicago7% acceptance
- Northwestern University5% acceptance
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign44% acceptance
- University of Illinois Chicago70% acceptance
- DePaul University55% acceptance
- Loyola University Chicago93% acceptance
- Illinois State University89% acceptance
- Southern Illinois University-Carbondale90% acceptance
How parents track GPA toward selective schools like College of DuPage
Solyo helps parents track grades pulled directly from school emails, calculate GPA the same way colleges like College of DuPage recalculate it, and ask an AI college counselor specific questions about their teen's odds. The platform is built for parents — not students — and turns what's usually a fragmented planning process into a single dashboard.
Common questions parents ask about College of DuPage
What GPA do I need for College of DuPage?
College of DuPage has a broadly accessible admissions profile, and most students who complete a standard college-prep curriculum with a 3.0 GPA or higher are competitive for admission.
What SAT or ACT score does College of DuPage typically admit?
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 570–660, with an EBRW midpoint near 640. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 27–31.
How much does College of DuPage actually cost after financial aid?
The average net price at College of DuPage after grants and scholarships is $35,196 per year. That figure is more useful for budgeting than the published sticker price, because it reflects what families actually pay after aid is applied.
Is College of DuPage realistic for my child?
Compare your teen's current unweighted GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against the ranges above. If both numbers fall inside the school's middle-50, College of DuPage is a target school. If both fall below the 25th-percentile mark, treat it as a reach and balance the application list accordingly.
Data sourced from the 2025-2026 Common Data Set submitted by College of DuPage, and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Solyo extracts admissions data from official Common Data Set publications and refreshes it annually.